Dealing with Loose Ends: Pride of a Quincy
This article, , is one of four one-shots featuring the individual battles of Kentaro, Akiye, Hawke and David against Shinji Mitsuhide, Zatoichi, Suitai Shiba and Kojima Taira. This particular chapter involves the battle between David and Kojima and serves as the prequal to the battle between Hawke and Shinji, and runs conurrentrly to the battles fought by Kentaro and Akiye. ---- Kojima was massaging his aching jaw when David, adopted son of Kusaka and Kireina and Hawke's brother, appeared before him with a solid bow in his right hand. Kojima appeared to be somewhat annoyed by how easily Kentaro had dealt with his attack, and the look he directed towards David was filled with contempt. “A bow?” He asked. “Are you a Quincy?” “Maybe.” David replied. David shrugged his shoulders which momentarily drew Kojima's attention to the kama on David's back. Perfect. Now he could begin the start of his second plan. He loosed an arrow to test the waters which Kojima easily batted aside with his Zanpakuto. David attempted three arrows simultaneously this time and Kojima evaded the first two before shattering the final like he did with the first arrow. “Just as I thought.” David acknowledged, sounding vexed. “I hope that isn't everything you have.” Kojima exclaimed. “If it is you may as well leave now and save me the trouble-” David silenced his opposition with a lightning-fast arrow that sliced him across the cheek! Blood trickled down Kojima's face and the bulging eyes betrayed his surprise for everyone to see. If looks could kill David would be dead two or three times over. “Write me off at your peril.” David exclaimed. “Next time I'll pierce your throat.” “You should have killed me with that shot because you won't get another miracle!” David took to the skies just before Kojima smashed the floor! His Zanpakuto transformed from a katana into a long straight-edged blade of large proportions. That wasn't what held David's gaze though. The area around where Kojima had struck was turned to lustrous gold that sparkled underneath the sun. “Well... that changes things.” David said, annoyed, surprised and equally distraught. David thus resolved not to let Kojima close on him. The moment he was struck once the battle would effectively be over, for if he lost a single limb he would be at a massive disadvantage. They played a game of deadly cat-and-mouse through the air. Kojima was constantly on the defensive as he tried to close in on David, and the young Quincy was constantly loosing arrows to impede him. But that could only work for so long. Kojima soon resorted to Kido to answer David's arrows and in-time he ground on through the onslaught of arrows – either by batting them aside with Kido or turning them to gold with a slash of his Zanpakuto – and finally brought his massive sword down in an attempt to crush David's skull! “I've finally got you.” David whispered. He finally drew the weapon strapped to his back which was a large kama with an equally long chain. David moved with a speed he didn't think he possessed. He wrapped the chains around Kojima's arms and proceeded to pull it tight, which succeeded in pulling his strike to the side. David then moved himself a distance away from Kojima to escape the power of his Zanpakuto, which was now turning the ground around him into gold. “What do you call a second miracle?” David asked. He loosed an immensely large arrow using the vast majority of the ambient reishi in the immediate area. The result was an arrow many times larger than the ones David had used up until now. Kojima futilely attempted to protect himself by using Kido but David's arrow pierced through it and blasted a hole clean through the traitorous Captain's chest! “Shin told me all about you.” David said, revealing his earlier surprise to have been feigned. “I know all the abilities of your Zanpakuto as well as the attacks you favour. Knowing that all I needed to do was steer the battle in the way I wished, leading you to think you had me cornered. Thank you for playing your part so well.” “You little... bastard...!” Kojima wouldn't last. Even if he managed to fight back and somehow land the single attack he needed to defeat David, he wouldn't survive his wounds. The hole created in his chest had undoubtedly blown away more than a few of his vital organs. His death would soon be upon him. But it appeared he wasn't quite ready to give up yet. Despite his injuries he was still stronger spiritually than David was. He exerted all of his phenomenal reiatsu in one concentrated burst aimed at David, hoping proabably to hold him in place. It was a final desperate gambit. “What are... you attempting?” David asked, struggling to keep his feet. His gambit may yet pay off. “Bankai, Kinhashi Gintama!” Kojima roared. The ground leading up to David was beginning to rapidly turn to gold! David saw what Kojima was planning too late and cursed himself for a fool for not having taken to the skies before he fired that one massive arrow. From the gold rose a massive gold-covered warrior which, according to Shin, possessed the same dreadful ability as Kojima's Shikai. “Not good!” David exclaimed, sounding desperate. There was only one option left to him. David still held the chain of his kama and internally thanked his father, Kusaka, for having given it to him all those years ago. For the weapon was the same as the one Kusaka had earlier created and used based on the same sword-forging techniques favoured by Kenji. It was the only existing demonstration of Kusaka's Reijutsu skill. It was similar to a Zanpakuto but could be used by anyone with spiritual power, which, of course, David had in spades. It was time to unveil his trump card. “Ready, Okita?” David asked of the kama. He was consumed in a black column of spiritual power! Black wings burst from that column and David soon followed by soaring high into the sky. He uncoiled the kama from around Kojima's arms and shifted his focus on the colossal Bankai. Black energy shrouded the kamas blade and with a roar and a declaration of “Reissen” he floored the massive entity with a single decisive wave of spiritual power! “Goodbye, Kojima! Reissen!” The resulting explosion must have succeeded in killing Kojima for the massive Bankai dissolved into a pool of liquid gold before it too vanished. The impression in the earth that resulted from David's Reissen was massive. “Now... who needs help?” David asked, Kojima forgotten. It seemed everyone else was still fighting. Akiye was doing a fine job; by what he could determine she had barely been touched and Zatoichi was struggling to keep his head above the water. Kentaro, however, was being pushed back. But then was he really trying? David decided against helping Kentaro, and that boiled down mostly to the fact it was a personal battle; and also because he knew Kentaro to be testing the waters. So instead David moved rapidly to where Hawke was fighting. Hawke was a fast a fighter; he always tried to end it as quickly as possible and failing that he would use intelligence to limit his foes effectiveness. Right now however he was being driven back. “Try us both!” David, with his wings spread wide, loosed a single arrow of greater size – but not quite the size of the one that had struck Kojima – which Shinji, surprised at the intervention, barely evaded.